keywords

Cognition - is where the audience perceives what they see in the media and believe it. .

In relation to Crash… in the news audiences hear a lot of negative information about black people. This includes drugs and guns. However in Crash when peter is about to pull out a holy statue the officer thinks he is pulling out a gun. He makes this judgement based on his stereotype and what he sees in the media.

Multi-culturalism – the recognition that the increasing cultural diversity of western societies should be acknowledged, supported, encouraged and reflected in all aspects of life, as being both inevitable and also socially and economically desirable.

Crash shows that racism is apart of society, even though some characters may not come across as racist

Polysemic - Describes a sign for which there are many possible interpretations and meanings dependent on individuals’ social, cultural and educational backgrounds.

Looking at the characters and how they interpret events...the carjacking both husband and wife had different interpretations...which could relate to different social and educational backgrounds

Antagonist – The principal opposing figure or villain in a narrative set in binary opposition against the protagonist

This could be Officer Ryan as throughout the film he can be seen as a villain...but near the end he is recognised as a hero.

Protagonist - The leading character or hero in a film with whom the audience can identify and from whose point of view the action is positioned often set in binary opposition against the antagonist

I think that all characters can be seen as protagonists as they are all involved in their own 'story'.

Stock character - a stereotypical, predictable minor characters

The shop owner’s daughter

Blaxploitation film – when black actors featured in principal roles usually associated with whites. Although seen as exploitative, were in fact part of a changing attitude towards black characters and the representation of black culture.

Some of the main characters are black actors.actresses which shows that they are making a stand for their beliefs and they way society has previously viewed them.

Black feminism – A feminist perspective which argues that a black women’s experience of inequality is more intense than a white women’s because it involves discrimination on racial and cultural backgrounds as well as gender grounds.

Making a comparison. Jean Cabot and Christine Thayer, as they both feel insecure at one point

Objectivity – The presentation of a media text from a neutral or objective standpoint, without individual or institutional bias and without the deliberate preferment of one viewpoint over another.

Looking at they way different stereotypes are being represented

Attitudes, beliefs and values- this term is commonly used when discussing the audience for media products and the factors influencing the reception of media messages.

How the audience reacts to they ways in which different people are being presented, in addition to looking at how and why people assume that one person fits into a particular stereotype i.e. Peter and Anthony